You never know exactly when it’s going to come, but you know that it’s going to come, and the AutomobileMagazine list of All-Stars is here. Six of the cars that were on the 2013 list have survived into 2014, just two have made the leap from the 2012 roundup, and there are three common names with the 2011 ranking. The only ‘two’ cars to show up in all of those years and this one: the BMW 3 Series – now the 3/4 Series, and the Porsche Boxster and Cayman. The mighty eleven:

Cars were chosen for the single reason that the magazine’s editors like them, then they took them on a road trip from Ann Arbor, MI to New Orleans, LA. You can read one rationale for why each car was chosen, you can read a second rationale for each choice in the press release below, and there’s also the story of that road trip on Automobile Magazine website if you’ve still got some time left.

Employing complex scientific formulas and methodologies probably best described as “Whatever we felt like choosing,” Automobile has named its All-Stars for the 2013 model year. The 11 vehicles earned their trophies for being “the best and most significant” offerings to the mag’s staff and contributors, and while we were surprised to see a couple of them on the list, none of them were shocking. In no particular order, they are:

Random notes: The least expensive vehicle on the list was the Ford Focus at $16,995 however, it was the $24,495 Focus ST that was actually driven; the least expensive vehicle as-tested, when such indication was given, was the $28,265 BRZ; the most expensive vehicle as-tested was the $75,615 Porsche Boxster S, hurdling the price of the A7 by nearly $4,000; the greatest disparity between base and as-tested price was the Ram, from the $24,395 skin-and-bones truck to the $54,335 Laramie Longhorn Crew Cab; the GTI was viewed through the history of its birthplace, Wolfsburg.

There you have it. Head on over to Automobile for the full story and the adventures they created to test each winner.